Modern construction design often requires piles to be driven into the earth at desired locations. In the context of the present invention, the term “pile” will be used to refer to a rigid, elongate member capable of being driven into the earth. Piles may take many forms and are normally used as part of the footing for a structural element such as a building foundation or bridge pier, but piles may be used for many reasons, and the end use of the pile is not a part of the present invention.
The term “drive” as used herein refers to the application of a force along a longitudinal axis of the pile either to force the pile into the earth or to extract the pile from the earth. The terms “handle” or “handling” as used herein refer both to the driving of a pile into the earth and to the movement of pile prior to driving.
The present invention is of particular significance when the pile takes the form of a steel H-beam, and that application will be described herein in detail. However, the principles of the present invention may be applied to other pile configurations, such as cylindrical piles (e.g., wooden piles, pipe piles, caissons, etc.) and/or sheet piles.
Pile handling systems that use vibratory loads in combination with driving loads are highly effective at forcing piles into or extracting piles from the earth. The vibratory forces of such vibratory pile driving systems are transmitted to the pile to be driven by a clamping assembly. The clamping assembly ensures that the vibratory forces in both directions are applied to the pile to be driven.
Conventional clamping assemblies engage an end of the pile such that the driving and vibratory forces are applied along an axis of the pile. Some specialized pile handling systems employ clamping assemblies that are adapted to grip a side of the pile. Other specialized pile handling systems employ clamping assemblies that are adapted to grip either a side or an end of the pile. The ability to grab either the side or the end of a pile facilitates both moving of the pile prior to driving and driving of the pile without the use of additional equipment. The present invention relates to pile handling systems having clamping assemblies that are adapted to grip either the side or the end of the pile.
The need exists for improved pile handling systems capable of gripping a pile from either the side or the top and driving the pile with a combination of driving and vibration forces.